288 a year's weather. 



this year, which, too, had its remarkable rain and thunderstorm, but 

 registered only '95-inch of rain. The total rainfall from January ist 

 to June 30th, 1888, was i4-68-inches; for the same months this year, 

 17'oi-inches; whilst we were to the bad in May nearly four inches 

 and three-quarters, we were only two inches and three-eighths at 

 the end of June. As half-a-year has passed, perhaps the briefest 

 summary possible may be interesting : — 



Mean of British June rainfall (10 years) .. .. 2'48-inches. 



Truro „ „ (30 years) . . . . 2- 4 o-inches. 



„ „ annual „ (30 years) . . . . 3 - 46-inches. 



„ „ Jan. 1 to June 30 rainfall (1888) 2.44-inches. 



„ „ (1889) 2"83-inches. 



As mentioned in the last letter, we had no frost in May ; this, 

 and the dry warm weather since, have given us fine grass and a 

 heavy hay harvest, and developed the seasonal phenomena 14 days 

 or so before their general average. Wheat was in flower in Truro 

 on the 15th; in 1887, the year of drought mentioned above, on 

 the 23rd. In June, 1789, a century ago, wheat was in flower on 

 the 4th in the eastern counties. 



It is a somewhat singular thing that, though June of last year 

 was so wet, the 15th was the hottest day here (87 degrees in the 

 shade) during 1888. The hottest day this month was on the 27th, 

 83 degrees in the shade. We had sunshine on every day except 

 one. The barometer was very high, the mean corrected pressure 

 for the month being 3o*oo7-inches, the mean maximum heat 70-6, 

 and the mean minimum 50-9 degrees. Our coldest night was on 

 the 3rd, 46 degrees. 



The cuckoo was heard on the 23rd, and on the 25th we saw one 

 pursued by a swallow. The cuckoo remains here usually till July; 

 the records of when last seen and heard are very interesting. 



The herbage here was rank ; in one day's tour through the 

 district around the mouth of the Helford River, on June 25th, we 

 noted 210 different species of plants belonging to 48 natural orders, 

 in flower. For a list, see the West Briton, of July 4th, under 

 the heading "An English Garden of Eden." This is the year of 

 foxgloves ; men with long memories remember nothing like it. 



July 3rd, 1889. 



